We get up at
7:30am. Considering we didnt get to bed until 2:00am this
is quite an achievement.
This turned out to be the longest, strangest and unhappiest final
full day of a holiday that Ive ever had.

We are all
pretty tired, but were determined to make the most of the
day ahead, so we are on the bus to the Animal Kingdom by 8:30am.
Susan and Lu Beth have persuaded Evan to join us and we meet them
outside the main gate at 9:00am. Good lord, they are actually on
time! This has really thrown me. Ill have to re-plan the
entire day now as the itinerary was based around them being at
least 30 minutes late as normal!

We first get
Fastpasses for Kali River Rapids, then proceed to Kilimanjaro
Safaris which has a 20 minute wait. We see loads of animals
including hippos, rhinos and lions.

Over to Kali
where the ladies are all anticipating a soaking for yours truly
with an almost evangelical zeal. Not to be, my friends. Susan
gets soaked, the rest get wet and Kevin walks off with a few
light splashes. The sun always shines on the righteous.

There are very
few people in the stand by line, the clock out front reads 15
minutes. We are due to join up with Sharon, Gerry, Gabby and
Marrisa at 11:00am, so Evan and I run over to Harambe to meet
them and ask if they want to ride Kali.

As we enter the
line the guy out front tells us the wait is now 45minutes. Wow,
that jumped up quick. We decide to get Fastpasses and wile away
the time by walking through the Maharajah Jungle Trail. The fruit
bats are as fascinating as ever and the tigers are as relaxed as
ever. Comatose would be a better description.
A big plus is the aviary at the end of the trail; we see many
lovely and interesting birds here.

Dunno who the guy on the left is.
Not quite sure how, but this is the only photo we managed to get
of the whole tour group.

Time for Kali.
Or rather not time for Kali, as the ride has broken down. Foiled
again.

Lets try
Dinosaur. The wait says 25 minutes. After 20 minutes we have
barely moved, so we decide to abandon this as a bad idea.
Unfortunately we now have to say goodbye to Sharons gang as
they are staying at the Animal Kingdom, while we are going to eat
and then return to the Boardwalk for a rest before going into
Epcot tonight.

It has been
wonderful to see Sharon and Evan again and to meet Gerry, Gabby
and Marissa for the first time. Due to a number of reasons we
havent been able to get together quite as much as we all
would have liked, but the time we did spend together was great
fun. Goodbyes are always sad, but we know we will all meet up
again in the future.

The remaining
members of the band head to Tusker House for lunch. As counter
service restaurants go, this is a good one. As well as chicken
dishes they also have salmon, salads and wraps. We have the 1./2
a rotisserie chicken with garlic potatoes, a chicken sandwich and
peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the girls. I cant
remember the price, probably due to the large beer that
accompanied the meal, but it was reasonable.

Back at the
Boardwalk we rest, shower and get ready before Susan and Lu Beth
join us. The plan is for the usual last night in Epcot.

We sit out on
the balcony enjoying both the view and various alcoholic
beverages. The skies get darker and darker and there is soon a
reasonable display of lightning.
We move to the Belle Vu Lounge and watch as the rain hammers
down. It is very heavy and showing no signs of letting up, so an
executive decision is taken. We are going to eat at Spoodles
rather than traipse around Epcot getting soaking wet.

Unfortunately,
before we move off, Grandma suddenly feels very sick. I take her
back to the room and get her settled into bed, as her back is
getting worse as well. She insists I go and eat, as she
doesnt want to spoil anyones fun.

Off to
Spoodles. Now, the exact food items we have here and the cost are
rather vague as Susan and Lu Beth insist on using their Wishes
programme again to spoil us. I do recall a sampler plate,
flatbreads and filet mignon flying around the table at various
times. However, I can report with a degree of accuracy that the
food is very good along with the service.

Around 8:40pm
we look out the window to see it has finally stopped raining.
Great! Lets rush over to Epcot and watch Reflections of
Earth one last time.
Doing the only gallant thing, I rush out leaving Susan and Tam to
pay the bill and get dessert to go.

Me, Julia, Lu
Beth India and Georgia walk to the International Gateway. When I
say walk, I mean in the sense of a 50km walkers
walk. Arms are pumping and bottoms are waggling. Poor
Lu Beth is never going to win an Olympic gold in this event.
Shes trailing in last. Come on woman, you didnt join
up with the Stringers to have a good time you know.

As we pass the
bag check, the security guard asks if I have alcohol in the
plastic cup Im holding. Well, it aint Bovril me old
mate! He tells me Ill have to finish it before entering the
park. Now, wait a minute, I am just about to go into Epcot where
they practically throw beer at you from every nook and cranny,
and youre telling me that I cant take in half a
plastic cup of beer that Ive just purchased in a Boardwalk
restaurant? Well, that makes a lot of sense.
There is no one else around, so I take it in anyway. None of the
CMs on the gate says a word.

We manage to
see Reflections of Earth from the area in front of the bridge
alongside the fireworks cruise boats.
This gives a different perspective. The globe is a little closer
from here and you can make out the changing scenes more readily,
but I prefer our normal spot in front of Norway as you get a
broader view from there.

After
Reflections of Earth we stroll down to Mousegear for some last
minute shopping. I leave the ladies to it for a while and slip
out to stand under Spaceship earth and stare up for the last
time. No matter how many times I stand in the same place, looking
up at the same thing, it will always astound. How true it is that
a thing of beauty is a joy to behold.

A slow walk
finds us back at the Boardwalk where Susan and Lu Beth are going
to come back to the room to see if Grandma is all right and to
say goodbye.
Unfortunately, Grandma is far from all right. She has been sick
several times and is in agony from her back. Anyone that knows my
mother will tell you that she doesnt complain about
anything unless it is really bad. She doesnt know where to
put herself. A doctor is required quickly.

We try the
local medical centre, but they wont do anything without a
reference number from Grandmas insurers. We finally get
through to the insurance company and they say we dont need
one if its less than $500.
How the hell do I know how much its going to cost?
This is getting stupid. We are getting nowhere fast and Grandma
is getting worse. I ring the front desk and tell them we have a
medical emergency. They put me through to 911 and I explain the
situation. They say they will send the paramedics.
They respond very quickly, within 10 minutes, but it seems like
an eternity. The paramedics say they are going to take Grandma to
Celebration Hospital.

So Grandma and
I take a little trip in the ambulance.
We arrive at 11:45pm and are put in a room where a female nurse
links up the monitors then disappears. 15 minutes go by and
nothing happens. Grandma is in excruciating pain. I find the
nurse and Im told a doctor will be with us in a few
minutes.
Another 15 minutes pass, still nothing. I go to the nurses
station to be told I should go to the other nurses station. Deep
inhalation of breath, keep calm. At the next desk I repeat my
request for a doctor. There is a chap in green overalls  he
is the doc. He says he is just finishing up and will be right
there. 10 minutes later he arrives in Grandmas room.

Now, 40 minutes
to see a doctor in an emergency may not be too bad, but believe
me, it seems an awfully long time when your mother is nearly
crying in pain.

From here on
things improve dramatically. The doctor checks Grandma over and
says it may be kidney stones. They need to run some tests and
that someone will be in to give Grandma something to help with
the pain. 5 minutes later a male nurse comes in to administer the
pain relief. The nurse says he has never heard such nice swear
words come out of the mouth of a patient in pain as Grandma says
Oh gosh and Goodness gracious.

Thankfully the
painkillers kick in after 10 minutes and Grandma starts to feel a
little better, she even manages to sleep a little before she is
wheeled off for X rays at 1:45am.

Susan and Lu
Beth have now arrived and brought a bag of things Tammy has
packed in case we need to stay the night. Typical of mother the
first thing she says to Susan is Did you have a good time
tonight dear?

We cant
thank either Susan or Lu Beth enough for all their help in
keeping things calm at the hotel and running around for us in the
early hours of the morning. Without their kindness the whole
unhappy experience would have been much worse. I might even
forgive them for their unpunctuality now.

At 2:15am the
doctor comes back and says Grandma has an infection, which has
moved to her kidneys. Antibiotics and nausea medication are the
solution. The male nurse returns to administer both and then
gives me lots of information about how to help Grandma and tells
me we should be able to return to the Boardwalk and will also be
able to fly home tomorrow. Actually, thats now today!

I thought it
was female nurses who were supposed to be considerate and kind.
This chap has been wonderful, much better than the
couldnt care less nurse we met when we came in.
Sorry we spoiled your night with our illness madam.

I go up to the
main desk to sort out payment. $1374! And that doesnt
include 2 more bills that will be sent direct to Grandmas
house. Lets hope the insurance is forthcoming.
The hospital calls a taxi for us and we leave at 4:00am.

The taxi ride
is a little surreal as the driver has a long beard, ponytail and
is playing Country and Western music in his taxi. The weirdest
thing is that he has one arm in a sling. A Twin Peaks moment.
Off we go with our one armed taxi driver to Walgreens to fetch
Grandmas medication ($148!) before continuing to the
Boardwalk. When we arrive at 4.30am I find I havent got
enough money for the tip, so I have to sprint the length of the
resort and back to get some cash from the room.

We finally get
Grandma tucked up in bed at 5:00am.
So ends the longest and strangest day I have ever had in Florida.